


We'd Hyphenated

by jell_0_shot



Category: Parks and Recreation
Genre: Angst, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-30
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-18 15:51:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8167529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jell_0_shot/pseuds/jell_0_shot
Summary: Based on the prompt: It was a mistake coming here.





	

It wasn’t that she was drunk, no - it was just that her body was warm and buzzing, and missing him. At this point, she didn’t care that April and Andy might see her. She didn’t even care if they heard what the two tequila shots were about to make her say.

“Leslie?”

“Hi, it’s me. I’m sorry, I know it’s late but, I licked some salt and sucked a lemon and, well, here I am.”

Ben pinched the top of his nose, trying to wake himself up. “What?”

“Alcohol.”

“Oh.”

Leslie hesitated, and he waited for her to speak.

“It’s just, I started planning it all in my head, you know? And I know that this is the kind of stuff they warn you about in the women’s magazines - ‘don’t freak him out with the heavy stuff too early on’ but -” She faltered, then found her words again. “I had this dream that we bought a little house on Pearson Drive, the one next to that giant maple tree. And - well, it had peach walls and fresh grass out front, and the letterbox - we’d painted it yellow, and -”

Her voice hitched and she shifted her eyes. Crying wasn’t part of the plan.

“And we’d painted our names on the side. Knope-Wyatt.”

“Leslie-”

“We’d hyphenated.” Her eyes were wide. “Ben, please, I’m miserable without you and I’m pretty sure you’re miserable without me too.” 

Ben shifted his weight onto the opposite foot and sagged. 

“Of course I’m miserable. I’m crazy about you, Leslie. And trust me, I want nothing more than to pull you close and forget about Chris’ rule. But I also know that you need to win this election, and I can’t be the reason you don’t. I’d never forgive myself.”

It was then that Leslie realised two things: first, that everything he was saying was absolutely true, and second, that she’d been here for almost ten minutes and was still standing outside, in the cold, on the other side of the doorway from him. 

She took a step back and exhaled, “You’re right, I’m sorry. It was a mistake coming here.”

Ben watched her disappear, her blonde curls fighting the wind as he fought the need to follow her. 

Leslie’s mistake was coming here tonight. 

His mistake was letting her leave.


End file.
